Need a recommendation regarding the AC issue
We have Amana(Goodman) R410A AC system 5 ton single staged from 2017, a 2-floor house 2700 sqft.
We came back from vacation, and so the thermostat says 82 degrees, and the ac was left on at 76.
It stopped cooling. We initaly though it might be a capacitor issue and ended up calling a guy as we wanted to get it fixed right away.
The guy come hooks up some sort of pressure gauge to the two inlets near the condenser unit outside. As soon as he saw the pressure, he said you have a major leak. I can either fill up your refrigerant and we see if you are lucky might last you 6 months. I ened up telling him go ahead fill it up. He filled it and charged me $300. I guess he filled 4lb no sure, but he had it pumping for close to 5 mins, and i could see pressure close to 350 on the high side. After that the ac started working and cooling.
But this lasted just a day. I told the guys he said there is a major leak, mostly in the coil. I looked up I could see oil leaked and stains from the condenser unit outside the fans, the top grill all had oil. The coil had no signs of the leak. So mostly it is the condenser.
Called many people; as soon as I mentioned the leak and the refrigerant after refilling lasted just a day, they all mentioned replacing the entire system is the better option.
They also mentioned. I am a second owner of the house, so you cannot claim warranty either, nor did you register on time. Even the previous owner had not registered these units.
Also you need a licensed HVAC tech to file a claim for you, no one said yes you claim it. All said you do not qualify, or when they do an actual thorough check, your claim will be rejected.
I have the best quote from the first guy itself for a Carrier single-stage 5-ton R454B whole new system. Around 9.7K including the furnace and 7.7k with out furnace. No issues with heating, at least as of now. I asked the guy what if I replace just the furnace in the future how much will you charge? He said 4k.
I am moving forward with $9.7K whole system change he said we will replace the thermostat for free(he will just cover the labour) I am getting Ecobee Enhanced.
Here is the new system.
26SCA560W003 is the condenser
Coil is CAAMP6024AMA
58SC0B090M21-20 for the furnace
Not sure if this is a good move, or should have gone the route for getting the whole system inspected for $300-600 and also doing a leak test. And replace anything bad or try to repair it. Thought it would be a rabbit hole and would end up spending the entire July and August in the heat of Texas and spending money.